Moorefield Station Developer’s Update

 

Representatives from the developers of Moorefield Station gave a presentation today at the Dulles Area Association of REALTORS® office in Leesburg, VA. The project is being done by Clark Construction and Edgemoore Real Estate Services, a sbusidiary of Clark Construction.

Here are some of the specifics:

• The project was approved in 2002 by a "Smart-Growth" administration
• The project is about 9.5 million square feet of mixed-use space
• The proposed Dulles Metro Rail will end at Moorefield Station
• Moorefield Station is being compared to Reston Town Center and Rockville Town Square - "a community defining place"
• Civic plaza, art center, concert stage, retail, restaurants, office space, etc
• Bike/walking trails will connect to other trails throughout Loudoun and the W&OD Trail

Loudoun County is also looking for a new administrative/government center. Here are some details:

• Loudoun County sent out RFP in 2007 due to need for more space for administration/employee
• Loudoun County wants to own space rather than leasing it
• Need 500K square feet with expansion to 800K total
• Final 3 sites for Loudoun Administration/Government Center were narrowed down to Moorefield Station, Oaklawn and The Village at Leesburg
• Loudoun County will announce the final location of its new government site sometime early next year

The also talked about the economic development and impact. Here are some of the stats:

• $25 million in yearly real estate taxes from new development
• New jobs from businesses moving to Loudoun from surrounding counties and from out of state
• Will stimulate additional commercial development as companies/businesses expand
• Dulles Metro Rail is predicted to produce an estimated $41 million in taxes

Some other points:

• Not "green buildings", but LEED certified
• Can't do a "Kiss and Ride" due to layout
• Rail will be on one side while entrance will come in on other side – that may prove to be a little tricky
• George Mason University (GMU) has been in talks wtih Moorefield Station about new campus, but GMU wants free land

Claude Moore Charitable Foundation, which has given over $9 million in grants to local organizations is donating 27 acres to the project along with funding assistance. Part of the future profits from Moorefield Station will go back to the Claude Moore Foundation to go back to the community.

In a nutshell, it's a ways out, Loudoun County hasn't chosen it's new administrative/government office site and the Dulles Metro Rail is still in limbo. I'll keep you posted as new things materialize…

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Washington, DC – Top 10 Worst Cities For Commuters

Did you dread your commute to work this morning? Feel like you wasted valuable time sitting in traffic? Notice your commute is getting longer and longer? Forbes feels the same way… Forbes named Washington, DC as the number 7 worst city for commuters. That’s even worst than Los Angeles who came in at number 9.

Forbes says that the reason for the ranking is mainly because most of the workers in Washington, DC commute from the Virginia and Maryland suburbs. Forbes reports that 15 percent of commuters take over an hour to get to work, the second highest rate in the country. Forbes also reports that drivers in this area spend 60 hours a year stuck in traffic and only 26 percent get to work in under 20 minutes – the worst rate in the country.

Though we’re "out here" in Loudoun County, VA, don’t think that we’re immune to the growing traffic problem. If you were around Loudoun County just 5 years ago, you’d know that traffic has gotten much worse despite the expansion of roads and building of overpasses and exchanges.

Despite the worsening traffic problem, public sentiment, rising gas prices and the fact that mass transit would help this problem, we’re still having a hard time getting the Dulles Metro Rail Project approved and funded.

Why is that? Maybe it’s because those in Richmond don’t care because they don’t have the same problem.

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